Rock Machine president Alexander Michael Ilich jailed for 12 years over drug and firearms offences
The Rock Machine bikie gang boss has been jailed over a hidden meth and gun stash, the second SA gang to lose their most senior member in two days.
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The president of the Rock Machine bikie gang has been jailed for more than a decade for gun and drug offences.
The gang will become the second in two days to have their senior leadership removed by law enforcement after the two founding brothers of the Descendents were taken into custody ahead of deportation on Tuesday.
The absence of the senior figures is likely to leave a power vacuum in the ranks of two gangs, some of whose members have significant links to the state’s methamphetamine trade.
Alexander Michael Ilich, 42, was arrested for having a Glock self-loading handgun at his Athol Park home as well as more than a kilo of methamphetamine, ammunition and $21,000 in cash.
The stash was hidden in the ceiling of the property and was uncovered by police when they spotted ladder marks on the wall.
The 1.198kg of methamphetamine had an estimated street value of $699,000.
Ilich was arrested by heavily armed police at the Royal Adelaide Show but went into custody without incidence.
He pleaded guilty to possessing the items.
Judge Simon Stretton said Ilich was operating as an “upper-level wholesale meth trafficker” and was both a serious repeat and firearms offender under legislation.
He said there was no conceivable legitimate purpose of the presence of the firearm of the drugs in his home.
Ilich, a father of four, has spent several stints in prison for other offending, but Judge Stretton noted this would be by far his longest stretch behind bars.
“It is indeed a tragedy that your imprisonment will have a significant negative impact on your relationships and your family,” he said.
Judge Stretton imposed a nine-year, seven-month and six-day non-parole period on Ilich who will be eligible for parole in 2030 after having his sentence backdated.
The Rock Machine bikie gang emerged in Adelaide about five years ago.
The gang was founded in Canada where it received international attention for a bitter and bloody war with the Hells Angels, claiming 160 lives over eight years.
Rock Machine joins the Descendants in having their leadership removed this week.
On Tuesday, The Advertiser revealed that Tom and Perry Mackie, two brothers who co-founded the gang in the 1970s, were arrested in a joint-agency effort to have them kicked out of the country.
The two men will be deported to New Zealand after having their visas cancelled on character grounds.
Police sources said the impact on the gang of removing the two brothers and senior office holders “would be profound.”
“When Mongols sergeant at arms Andrew Stevens was deported in identical circumstances that was the beginning of the end for the Mongols,” a senior detective said.
“He ran the gang with an iron fist and with him gone, so was the discipline and the band soon fell apart.
“The same situation could well happen here. The Mackies have been running the Descendants forever. There is no heir apparent, the junior Mackies may step in, but there are others in the gang who may feel it is their time.
“The power plays over the next few weeks and months will be interesting. Some will want the traditions of the gang to continue, others are just interested in making money. We will be closely watching to see who steps in and what direction it takes.”
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